Teen Ink

There was once a baby fern. It was all curled up into a tight, cozy ball. Soon it was time for the baby fern to open up, but it didn't want to. "It's time for you to unfurl!" said mommy and daddy fern to...(more »)

There was once a baby fern. It was all curled up into a tight, cozy ball. Soon it was time for the baby fern to open up, but it didn't want to. "It's time for you to unfurl!" said mommy and daddy fern to the baby fern. "You need to grow, show the world your beauty, and develop into what you were made to be!" "I don't want to!" complained the baby fern. "I feel all cozy curled up like this." But one day the fern could take it no longer - its only choices were open or die. Naturally, although scared out of its mind, it took a leap of faith and opened up. At first it felt a little shaky with its broad new leaves and many parts, but soon it got the hang of being an adult fern. "Look how much energy I can make with all of my leaves exposed to the sun! Look how much more I am able to do! What if I had stayed curled up? What would have become of me?" it exclaimed. This fern teaches a good lesson - new things are scary, but once we take the risk of trying them, so much good can happen that it is almost always worth our while. Confidence, for the fern and for us, is not an easy thing to acquire, but it can make all the difference. :)« read less